Lynnwood bandit runs into solid wall of muscle

"Old School" was expelled Friday, thanks to an aspiring professional bodybuilder.

It all happened in Lynnwood when a suspected serial bank robber known as the "Old School Bandit" because of his old-school bandanna disguise tried to rob a Banner Bank.

The bodybuilder — Todd Jewell, 26, of Yakima — had just arrived at the bank on 188th Street Southwest with his wife, Shawna, 27, who was waiting to hand in her résumé. They're both between careers.

They saw a man, wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses, slip on a bandanna, approach a teller and demand money.

"It took a few seconds to realize what was actually happening," Shawna Jewell said in an interview Saturday.

The 6-foot, 280-pound Todd Jewell quickly sized up the robber, who appeared to be about 3 inches shorter and 100 pounds lighter. And when he didn't see the robber holding a weapon, he ambushed him.

"I realized I should have no problem throwing him around a little bit," Jewell said.

"I was basically trying to hurt him enough to get him to stop, to get him to the ground and to quit fighting."

He succeeded, actually breaking the man's ribs in the process when the man wouldn't succumb.

The man was identified as Chadwick Asheim, of Seattle, and he's suspected in nine Seattle-area bank robberies in the past two months. A warrant had been out for him for leaving a halfway house, but authorities hadn't been able to catch him.

"This guy ["Old School"] was elusive, and I applaud him [Jewell]," said FBI agent Larry Carr, who is based in Seattle. "This is one of those cases where, every week since this guy started hitting, I had to e-mail [warnings] to banks. Now I don't have to do this, thanks to Mr. Jewell."

Asheim was taken to the hospital for broken ribs and cuts and will be transferred to federal custody. The FBI said charges likely will be filed Monday.

And Saturday, Todd Jewell, in a cellphone interview while he and his wife drove back to Yakima, said he wasn't a hero. "I'm just a citizen tired of seeing innocent people victimized," he said. "I had the right tools for the job, and I just got the job done."

Jewell suffered minor cuts and bruises. But the unemployed man received good news: He said the FBI told him about a $5,000 reward he might receive.

"Being my size, I have to eat a lot, and this [money] will go towards paying the grocery bill," he said.

Jewell recently quit his job as an aerospace machinist in Yakima to focus on his bodybuilding career.

And after their adventure, his wife said she wants her husband to handle all future transactions at banks.

Susan Gilmore: 206-464-2054 or sgilmore@seattletimes.com

Florangela Davila: 206-464-2916 or fdavila@seattletimes.com